Home Remedies to Treat Corns and Calluses

It’s time to find out why we get corns and calluses and what we can do about them to improve our health.

Remember, they are there for a reason.

Learn how to treat them naturally and what lifestyle changes you need to make to prevent them from forming again.

Differences between a Corn and Callus

Many mistake a corn and a callus as being the same. The truth is a corn is a type of callus with a distinct shape. Both are hard and thickened skin surfaces that were formed because of constant friction, rubbing, or pressure on the skin. They can make walking difficult and painful when corns form on the feet.

To distinguish a callus from a corn, a callus is a rough and hard area of the skin often seen on the hands, feet, and other body parts that go through repeated friction. An example is a plantar callus seen on the bottom of the feet. Both corns and calluses are painful and annoying and involve skin thickening on parts of the body due to excessive pressure.

A corn is/has:

• Smaller than callus
• Not always hard in the middle
• Inflamed skin surrounding a hard center
• Painful when pressed

How To Treat Corns and Calluses

Everyone can get corns except for infants. Corns are manageable most of the time but don’t hesitate to see a doctor if they become too painful or if you have existing medical conditions like diabetes that can lead to life-threatening complications.

• Use corn removal products like corn plasters containing salicylic acid.
• For patients with diabetes or peripheral arterial disease, consult your doctor in the case of corns.
• Use special moisturizing creams to rehydrate body parts with thick skin.
• Trimming or removing the corn (usually done by a foot doctor or a podiatrist)
• Use of foam wedges to reduce the pressure
• Use of special padded shoe inserts for people with congenital foot deformities
• Bone surgery

Best Home Remedies To Treat Corns And Calluses

If the presence of corns bothers you but does not pose any health risk, you can try these natural home remedies for corns:

• Soak it in warm water and use a pumice stone or emery board to file them down.
• Soak the feet in a solution of baking soda and water to remove corns using a bucket of warm water mixed with three tablespoons of baking soda. You can also alternately make a baking soda paste and massage it onto the affected area.
• Sand the corn with soft strokes in just one direction using a pumice stone.
• Soak a cotton ball with vinegar and attach it to the area to get rid of corns overnight.
• Sprinkle the corn with cornstarch to get rid of moisture and prevent them from getting infected.
• Apply an effective moisturizer like petroleum jelly to keep the skin soft and smooth and prevent corns from forming again.
• Pineapple rind has enzymes that can hasten corn healing. Cover the area with a square pineapple rind and let it sit overnight. Do this for three to four more nights until the corn disappears on its own.
• Use lamb’s wool or organic cotton to separate the toes and prevent corns from forming.
• Apply castor oil on a medicated corn pad and place it on top of the corn overnight. Cover it with an adhesive tape. Castor oil hydrates the skin and reduces swelling to speed up corn removal.
• Apply several drops of vitamin E and mix with olive oil. Rub it on the corn for a few minutes and then wear socks overnight. Do this daily to moisturize the skin and soften the corn.
• Pour vinegar on an onion and let it sit for a day. Cut the onion in half before sleeping and secure it over the corn using a bandage. Do this homemade remedy for corns for four to five days to get rid of the soreness and infection while leaving you with healthy and softer skin.
• Add 1-2 teaspoon of turmeric and mix it with warm mustard oil to make a paste. Apply the paste on the corn, once it has cooled down, wrap it with a bandage overnight. Wash it off with mild soap and water the following day. Do this regularly until they disappear.
• Mix 1-2 teaspoon willow bark powder with water to make a paste. Add some lemon juice and maintain its paste-like consistency. Apply this paste on the corn and leave it on for the night. Do this remedy until you no longer see the corn.
• Secure a papaya peel over the corn with a bandage and allow it to stay on overnight. Soak the feet in warm water for 20-30 minutes the next morning to get rid of corns quickly.
• Break a fig leaf or branch so the milky latex in it begins to ooze out. Let it drip on the corn for healing.
• Add five drops of tea tree oil to a cotton ball and apply it on the corn. Secure the cotton ball with gauze and let it sit for several hours. Wash it off with soap and water and dry the feet using a towel. Tea tree oil has antibacterial and anti-fungal properties.
• Fill a small basin with ½ cup water and add a cup of hydrogen peroxide. Wait five minutes before soaking your foot in the solution for 15 minutes. This remedy is especially effective to treat corns that are just forming.

How to Prevent Corn

• Wash and scrub your feet daily.
• Apply petroleum jelly to moisturize the feet.
• Wear well-fitting socks and shoes.
• Buy shoes later in the day.
• Cut nails straight across and not over the edges or down the angles.
• Remove hard skin regularly using a foot file or a pumice stone.
• Change socks daily.
• Pad the tool handle or wear padded gloves when using tools and other equipment.

What is Corn Disease?

SCIENTIFIC NAME for Corn: Heloma (Plural helomata)
Corns are a medical condition otherwise known as clavus (plural clavuses or clavi). They are called corns because they resemble corn kernels growing on your body. It’s a callus of dead skin with a distinct shape found mostly on thin, hairless and smooth body surfaces. The common body parts affected are the fingers, bottom of the feet and toes. Remember, though, that excessive friction or rubbing can cause blisters and not just corns. They are more painful too.

Corns often form above and on the sides of the toes. A soft corn looks whitish and rubbery with a much thinner surface commonly seen between the toes. It’s also known as heloma molle. A hard corn looks like a tiny patch of thickened dead skin that has a tiny skin plug in the middle. A hard corn is also known as heloma durum. There are also seed corns. They are found on the soles of the feet that bear most of the body’s weight. Common body areas where corns form are the:

• Sole or bottom of the feet
• Over the ball of the foot
• Between the fourth and fifth toes
• Outside the pinky toe

How does a corn form?

Corns form once pressure points trace an elliptical or semi-elliptical path against the skin during a rubbing motion. The point of pressure is at the center and then slowly widens. Corns may persist even after surgery if the tissue producing the corn is still stimulated. Corn formation is actually the body’s way of protecting what’s under the skin from excessive pressure, rubbing, or even an injury.

What Causes Corns?

Formation of a corn is often a defense mechanism on body parts exposed to constant pressure or friction. Corns on feet often form due to: (1) (2)

• Constant exposure to rubbing or friction
• Abnormal feet anatomy or bunions
• Poorly fitting shoes (too short or too tight footwear)
• Gait or movement abnormalities
• Constant use of tools, equipment, or musical instruments that exert constant pressure on the fingers
• Certain occupations e.g. gardeners and farmers
• Old age
• Walking barefoot

Signs and Symptoms of Corns

What does a corn look like? Here are the signs and symptoms:

• Bump on the skin
• Thick and hard patch of skin
• Dry, flaky, and waxy skin
• Pain or tenderness under the skin or on the body part involved
• Possibly Fever

The corn’s base is visible on the surface while the top points inward, thereby causing pain and discomfort. There is also often a yellow ring surrounding a grayish center.

To better understand their differences:

• A hard corn is a hard patch of skin with a dense core often seen on the big toe or outside the small toe.
• A soft corn looks reddened, tender areas with a thin, smooth center found between the toes.
• A seed corn resembles a round and plug-like dead skin that is usually painful and often seen on the ball or heel of the feet.

Conclusion

No matter how ugly corns may look, they do their job of protecting what’s under your skin from harm or injury. If you don’t like seeing corns on your feet or fingers, take note of the risk factors that cause corns and avoid them when possible.

If you want to stop the pain and get rid of the calluses, try some of the homemade remedies above.

You can finally say goodbye to corns without taking any drastic measures like surgery or suffer in silence when running or walking.

Other Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/
http://www.webmd.boots.com/
http://www.medicinenet.com/
https://healdove.com/
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/
https://www.leaf.tv/
http://www.newhealthadvisor.com/
http://www.rapidhomeremedies.com/
http://www.findhomeremedy.com/